Ranma's interdimensional team of Heroes
by Shritistrang
Summary: Ranma is being employed by the Esper HQ to become the leader of a new team of heroes who will protect the universe. Please read 'Martial Artists in Spira' first and please read the Author's Notes within the story.
1. Chaos Scream

Author's Note:

This story is the connecting point between my other three stories 'Martial Artists in Spira', 'Chaos Scream' and 'Intergalactic Bounty Hunter Shinji'. If you want to follow the whole story, please read it in the correct order.

If you want to know what happened before Ranma came here, please read 'Martial Artists in Spira' first.

* * *

Right after Ranma vanished from the cliff in Spira, where he had said goodbye to Akane and his friends, he appeared outside a huge building that was floating on a big chunk of rocks in the middle of outer space.

Ranma looked up as far as he could see, but still couldn't see the top of this enormous skyscraper. There was nothing else around here, only this floating rock with the building.

"Ranma," Bahamut said with a proud voice. "Inside this building are the Esper Headquarters."

"Wow," Ranma muttered. "Does every Esper live there?"

'Noooo,' Carbuncle replied. 'This is just our working place. Our real home is much more comfortable. But we Esper work efficiently, and a nice landscape would only distract us from our work.'

"Right," Bahamut nodded. "Well, let's get inside. I bet the big boss is impatiently awaiting your arrival."

"What?" Ranma shouted in surprise. "I thought you were the king of the Espers."

Bahamut chuckled. "I AM the king of the dragons, true... and once, I even was the boss, when our company still was young... But later, my son, Bahamut Zero, took over the company and turned it into something much bigger... Well, my son isn't the boss anymore, but you see, that was a very, very long time ago."

"And... how are you gonna enter the building?" Ranma asked. He looked at the double doors. They were impressive, but not as big as a creature like Bahamut.

The black dragon chuckled. "Like this." And when he walked towards the doors, they suddenly grew in size. He could easily grab the doorknob and enter. A loud assortment of different voices came from inside.

Carbuncle floated towards the door, and it shrunk down to child-size. 'You coming, Ranma? The boss is waiting.'

Ranma scratched his head and followed his Esper friend. And when he approached the door, it grew back to its original size.

Inside, he saw the same mass of different creatures as Nodoka had seen on her first visit in here. Bahamut waved while he waded through the crowd, after a trail of larger creatures that were approaching a lift especially made for big beings as themselves. "Later, you two. I have to take a look at my office... I bet there is a big pile of letters on my desk that no one has answered while I was away. Well, it had only been a few 100 years... Well, see ya!" And he followed the colossal form of a Minotaur into the lift.

Carbuncle lead Ranma into the human-sized lift at the other end of the hall. 'Come, the boss' office is at the main floor.'

Ranma got into the cabin, careful not to step on some moogles. Carbuncle floated up to the buttons and pressed onto the number 100.

Slowly, the elevator began moving. Not many other Espers were entering, only a few moogles with letters.

Ranma got impatient. "Can't this thing move a little faster?"

Carbuncle shrugged. 'Sure.' He pressed a button that read 'Turbodrive' and held onto a handle that was attached to the wall. 'Hold on tight, Ranma,' he said.

And suddenly, the whole lift shot upwards like a missile. Ranma's body got thrown onto the cabin's floor forcefully, while the moogles had to be careful not to lose their letters.

BING! The door opened.

Carbuncle floated outside, followed by a slightly flattened Ranma. 'Here we are, Ranma... the top floor!'

It was nothing spectacular, really. It was just a short hall leading towards a big, crescent-shaped room. A big desk was standing in the middle of the room, and behind it, another door was leading to the main office of the building.

Carbuncle floated up to the gorgeous woman that sat behind the desk. 'Hello, honey,' he said. 'I'm home!'

The Esper woman smiled and scooped the little imp up into a big hug. "Bunky! I missed you! Smooch!" And she gave him a big kiss.

Carbuncle giggled as she released him. 'I'm happy to see you too, hon.' He gestured towards Ranma. 'Darling, that is my new master, Ranma Saotome, who saved Spira from Sin. Ranma, this is my wife: Siren! The most beautiful Esper that ever lived - and the secretary of the boss.'

"You charmer," Siren giggled. "I'm still not sure if Shiva deserves that title more than me."

Carbuncle coughed. 'Well, I'm not going to argue with Ifrit about that... but you know my opinion. Um, honey... we're here to see the boss. He knows we're coming, right?"

"I'll ask him, sweetheart... just a moment!" She pressed a button on her communication system and said: "Carbuncle and Ranma Saotome are here to see you, sir."

"Excellent," a pleasant voice answered. "Send them in!"

She smiled. "You heard him, he's waiting for you. Go inside!"

'Thanks, Siren! Come on, Ranma!"

Siren raised a brow. "What, no goodbye-kiss?"

'Um, sure thing, honey...' He floated over to her and gave her another kiss. 'Later...'

Ranma smirked as they walked towards the back door. "Hey, you got really lucky, guy..." He sighed. "But when I think about Akane... I think I'm a lucky man, too..."

They entered the next room. 'Hello, big boss!'

Ranma looked around in astonishment. This room really was something.

And then his gaze fell onto the person in front of him... and he gasped. It was...

"Goku?" Ranma gasped in surprise. "B-b-but how can you be here? You're just an Anime character!"

The Saiyan warrior smirked. "Well, that was the idea of King Kai, after I finished my battle against Buu. He told my story to a fellow Kai, and he was so excited when he heard my adventures, that King Kai made them into an Anime and Manga series - at least in the universes where Saiyans don't exist." He grinned. "But I was pretty surprised when I saw how many fans I had. But what surprised me even more was that Vegeta has nearly as much fans as I."

Ranma scratched his head. "But... what are you doing here? Aren't you dead? I mean... after you defeated Buu..."

"Yeah, well, things got pretty boring after that. The tournaments of the Kais just weren't as exciting as they used to be. But then King Kai told me about a special tournament, held in this world: The King of Espers Cup! The winner would be the leader of the Esper realm. Well, not really their king, more like their 'big boss'. The Espers were stronger than any warrior I fought before, so I decided to take part in this tournament. My opponents were pretty tough, especially that dragon, Bahamut, and that spiky-haired warrior called Cloud." He grinned again. "But in the end, I defeated the former boss, Bahamut Zero... I was the champion... and I became the boss. Pretty cool, huh?"

"I guess so..." mumbled Ranma. He still couldn't believe that he was talking to Son Goku, the legendary hero of the Anime series Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z.

Goku jumped over the little wall that was between the stone ground Ranma was standing on and the grass field on which he just did his training exercises. "So, you're the leader of the new hero squad, eh? Well, I gotta say: It was pretty sweet how you toasted that Sin monster. And I like how you stand up for your friends."

"Leader?" Ranma looked at Carbuncle. "You didn't tell me I was going to be the leader."

'Well, originally, I didn't know. But when the boss saw your true powers in the first fight against Vegnagun, he was very impressed. So he decided to make you the leader of your future team.'

Ranma sighed. "Well, I'm not used to being a leader, but I will do my best."

Goku grinned and patted the pig-tailed hero on his back... so hard that he fell over. "That's what I wanted to hear. You and your squad will be the major defensive force of the surrounding worlds, I'm sure of it."

"What do I have to do before I can go back to Spira - or Nerima? I mean, I told Akane it would take several years, but..."

"Well, you and your team members have to be trained under our coaches. The standard education time of apprentice heroes is two or three years. And when you learned how to work as a team, you will get your first mission. Afterwards, you can call yourselves true 'Defenders of the Universe'."

"Um, okay, but who are my teammates? And are they all here already?"

Goku made a cocky stance. "All right! Time for you to meet your first teammate!"

He pulled out a small device that looked like a cell phone and said: "Siren, you can call in the next guest."

"Right away, sir," Carbuncles wife responded.

Goku put away the cell phone. "You'll like this fighter, Ranma. I think the two of you will get along just fine."

The door opened.

Ranma's first impression was that the humanoid animal that approached him had black fur. But while the female hedgehog walked up to him, Ranma could see that he was wrong: Her fur wasn't exactly black, but a deep green. She also had some purple stripes on her head.

She extended a hand and smiled. "I am Pluto, called the 'Ultimate Life Form'... First Version!"

Ranma blinked, then grinned and accepted the handshake. "Hi there! The name's Ranma Saotome, martial artist and summoner."

"I take it you must be one of my new team members," Pluto said coolly while striding through the room. "And who's this cute lil' guy?" she asked while admiring Carbuncle's floating form.

Ranma laughed. "His name is 'Bunky', and he's married."

"Aw, what a bummer," she said in a playful voice. "He really is cute."

'It's 'Carbuncle', you hear?' Carbuncle snorted angrily. 'Only Siren may call me that.'

Ranma grinned. "Whatever you say, 'Bunky'!"

Goku laughed. "Well, I think that's enough. Pluto, why don't you show Ranma some of your abilities?"

Pluto smirked. "Sure thing, big boss!" She held out a hand and aimed for one of the training dummies situated on Goku's training grounds.

A purple shimmering ball of energy appeared before her hand, about the size of a small melon.

"Chaos Scream," the dark green hedgehog shouted, and tossed the ball towards the target. The training dummy flew apart in a shower of splinters.

Pluto rubbed her hands. "How's that?"

Ranma whistled. "Not too bad... but check this out!" He cupped his hands and formed a ball of ki, surrounded by a magical fire aura. "Magical Moko Takabisha: Flame Sphere!" And another training dummy went down in flames.

"Hey, hold it, Ranma! At that rate, we won't have enough dummies for training left."

'I thought YOU are the one that breaks most of them,' Carbuncle pointed out.

Goku grinned. "You have a point... but enough about me! All right, you two! Come along, and I'll bring you to your new quarters."

While they were leaving the room, Pluto had to think about something.

'Strange how things turned out,' she pondered. 'In my previous life, I would have tried anything possible to avert these turns of events... but now that I'm an 'Ultimate Lifeform', my view of life isn't exactly the same...'

And her thoughts went back to that day, when a floating light changed everything about her role in life...

* * *

Author's Note:

Now the story continues with Pluto's adventures. Please read 'Chaos Scream' next. The next chapter of 'Ranma's inter-dimensional team of heroes' will continue at the point after Pluto's story is being told.


	2. Intergalactic Bounty Hunter Shinji

Author's Note:

Please read 'Chaos Scream' before starting this chapter. Thank you!

* * *

Pluto became silent. All around the table, the other three had been listening intently to her story. She took a small sip of her tea.

"And..." Ranma finally said. "Did you find him again? Your brother?"

Pluto smirked. "Now that... is another story!"

'You're not going to tell it to us?' Carbuncle asked in a hopeful voice.

"Perhaps," Pluto replied. "But not now! Maybe later... now I'm hungry! It's time for lunch, if I'm not wrong."

At that moment, Goku's stomach began grumbling. "You know," he said. "I think she's right. Her story was so thrilling that I just didn't keep track of time. Let's go down to the cafeteria... everything's on me!"

'Oh no...' Carbuncle moaned. 'That means, after he's had lunch, the kitchen will be out of supplies for several days...'

They left the quarters. After Pluto arrived, Goku had led them here. After Ranma and Pluto had put away the few things they brought with them, Ranma asked her to tell them her story. But Carbuncle had been curious as well, and so she gave in. Of course, that had been only the beginning of her adventures that lead her to the Esper HQ... but as she said, she would tell them the rest of her adventures some other time.

While the lift took them downwards, Ranma curiously asked Pluto: "So, tell me... what happened to that Mamoru guy? Did you really manage to save him?"

Pluto just smiled. "This... is also part of another story." Ranma groaned.

The elevator stopped, and they stepped out into a wide corridor. At it's end, they could see a pair of swinging doors. Behind them, a loud mixture of voices could be heard. Over them hung a sign which read: 'Cafeteria'.

As they approached the swinging doors, Goku's cell phone beeped. He pulled it out and answered: "Yes, Siren? What's the matter?"

"Sir," the sweet voice of Carbuncle's wife answered. "Mr. Vegeta is on the other line. He insists on speaking to you."

Goku groaned. "What does he want this time? Oh well, this is gonna take a while... Carbuncle, why don't you and the others go ahead and pick a table? Tell Kirby they're my guests."

'Sure thing, boss," the green imp responded, while inwardly sighing in relief. 'Phew! Now we can eat without the boss eating everything what's in the kitchen...'

While they were leaving, Goku was talking into his cell phone. But only shortly after that, a loud voice was yelling out of the phone:

"KAKAROT!!"

Goku winced as he held the phone away from his ears.

"How DARE you partnering me up with that ridiculous Cactuar? If that's supposed to be some kind of joke, I don't think it's very funny!"

"Now, now..." Goku chuckled nervously. "Calm down, old buddy... I'm sure if you give him time, you'll grow to like him..."

"ARE YOU MOCKING ME?" the angry voice shouted in rage. "I am a Sayian prince of noble blood! I REFUSE to work together with that... that... PINCUSHION! Every time he sits down in our chair, I have to pluck out those goddamned needles of his! You may be the leader of this freak show, but you better do something about this situation, or I'll swear, the next time I see this joke of an Esper, I'll Galick Gun his sorry ass to Namek!"

"Hey, Namek was destroyed, remember?"

"I REMEMBER PRETTY WELL!"

Carbuncle shook his head. 'Those two... it's always the same...'

He led the others into the cafeteria, where an assorted bunch of creatures was having lunch. They sat down at a free table. While Pluto and Ranma waited, Carbuncle floated to the counter, where a pink, puffy creature with a smiling face and body like a beach ball was accepting orders.

"Hi there Carbuncle, what can I bring you today?"

'Make that three daily specials, Kirby. Table 12, and it's on the boss.'

Kirby nodded. "You got it! Three specials, coming right up!"

And Carbuncle went back to his friends.

After a while, Kirby yelled: "Three daily specials, table 12!" and they had to go and fetch their food.

The meal made Ranma's mouth water. Three different kinds of meat, rice, noodles and a special sauce that was smelling delicious. Also, a big pile of mixed vegetables.

"That smell... what kind of sauce is this?"

Carbuncle smiled. 'That is Kirby's special recipe. It's his secret, and he only tells the ingredients to his kitchen staff.'

* * *

Kirby walked into the kitchen. "Hey, do we still have enough ingredients for my special sauce?"

His apprentice, Cook Kawasaki, thought about it. "Well, we're almost out of Malboro saliva..."

"Then order some more," Kirby told him. "My customers are trusting me. They love my sauce. I can't let them down!"

* * *

'You know, another future member of your team is coming today,' Carbuncle told his friends between bites.

"Weally?" Ranma said with his mouth full. "What'sh hish name?"

'Well, he's a space pilot, and his name is...'

* * *

Shinji sighed while riding the elevator upwards. No one was with him, not even a few moogles.

He was one of the best pilots out there. He had trained under a legend. He had travelled many planets and had unbelievable adventures.

And now... he was going to join with other great heroes to form a team to protect the universe.

But... that still wasn't enough to distract him from his sorrow...

For his only love... was dead.

* * *

Nerima, 8 o'clock in the morning.

Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, marched up to a girl that several days ago had vanished alongside his two loves. And now, she had come back. Two days ago, to be precise. And he was going to get answers from her.

"Nabiki Tendo, I need information from you!"

Nabiki sighed. She considered pulling out her Alchemist dressphere to silence him with a mute bomb. "What do you want, Kuno?"

"I MUST know the whereabouts of Akane Tendo and the pig-tailed girl! I'll pay every price! Tell me! How much?"

Nabiki looked at him. Then, she said: "Sorry, Kuno... I'm afraid you can't afford it. Now, if you excuse me, I have to go to class."

And she left him standing.

Kuno snarled. Even her sister wouldn't tell him where the beauteous Akane Tendo and his pig-tailed tigress did vanish to. So be it. He would find the answers somewhere else.

He would skip school for today. As the principle's son, he could afford to do so.

Even if said principle was a loony...

When he walked out of the front gate, he bumped into someone.

"Ouch! Dang, Gosunkugi, look where you're going!"

Tatewaki looked offended. "I am Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder, Chinese scum. Move out of the way!"

Mousse put his glasses on his nose. "Oh, it's you... Wait a minute, I wanna ask you something."

"What do you want, cur?"

The master of hidden weapons gritted his teeth. "I only wanted to know if you have seen Shampoo, my love."

"You're talking about that ditzy Chinese waitress?"

"Exactly!"

Kuno scratched his chin. "Hmmm... now that I think about it, I haven't seen her since about that time when Akane Tendo simply disappeared."

"Akane too? Damn, where could they be?"

"Excuse me," another voice said. Kuno and Mousse freaked out, but relaxed when they realized it was only Konatsu who had hidden inside a trash can.

"Sorry about that," the male kunoichi apologized. "But I heard you talking. I don't suppose you have seen Ukyo-sama?"

"She vanished too?" Mousse wondered. "Now that's strange. All of the young girls seem to be vanishing."

"Nabiki Tendo and her sister Kasumi have returned, but they didn't want to reveal any of their whereabouts," Kuno explained.

"Perhaps they're hiding something," Mousse pondered.

"You don't think... it has something to do with Ranma?" Konatsu said in a small voice.

The other two men blinked. "Of course!" Kuno shouted. "The foul sorcerer has not only enslaved my two loves, but also every other fair maiden. Perhaps Akane Tendo's sisters had been able to flee and didn't dare to speak because they fear him."

"Yes, that makes sense," Mousse growled. "Damn you, Ranma! You're not only stealing away my Shampoo, you want a harem of your own!"

"Are you sure that's really the reason?" Konatsu wondered. "Perhaps they just followed him."

"Nonsense!" Kuno shook his head. "Why should they follow him if they could be in the presence of MY magnificence?"

"But that leaves the questions where he took them," Mousse sighed.

"Ukyo-sama..." Konatsu sighed. "At this rate, I'll never see her again..."

Suddenly, a silent laughter filled the air.

"Who's there?" Kuno asked and raised his bokken. "Show yourself, coward!"

"I can't see anyone," Konatsu whispered. "If it's a ninja, it has to be a good one."

"Relax, my friends," a gentle voice told them. "I am on your side. I listened to your conversation and couldn't help but feel pity for you... Truly, every single one of you, robbed of his true love... what a tragedy!"

"What's it to you?" Mousse snapped. "Who are you, anyway?"

"Why, I am the answer to your problems. I can help you find your beloved ones he took away from you."

"R-really?" Konatsu stammered. "But how?"

The voice chuckled. "Just tell me: Are you willing to sacrifice everything else just to gain the love of these women?"

"Of course," Mousse instantly answered.

"I would put my life at stake," Kuno swore.

"For Ukyo-sama, I would do anything," the cross-dressing ninja nodded.

"Very well then... I'll help you!"

And in the blink of an eye, the three boys vanished.

* * *

Mousse, Konatsu and Kuno were standing in a dark cave, lit only by two torches hanging on the wall. On the ground, between those torches, a very old chest was standing.

"Where is this place?" Mousse asked while looking around. "How did we get here?"

"This is the armory of lost souls," the voice declared. "In that chest, you'll find fine armor of fallen warriors... the spirits of these warriors will help you find what you seek. If you are willing to face countless dangers, just to save your beloved ones, open it!"

Konatsu took a look at the chest and shivered. Somehow, it gave him the creeps.

Kuno proudly strode towards the chest. "Ah, the fine garments of noble warriors, suited for a samurai as I. Very well then, for my beloved ones, I'll do it!"

Mousse nodded and stepped next to him. "Yeah, me too!"

Konatsu hesitated for a moment, then nodded and stood next to the others.

Mousse knelt down and opened the chest's clasps. Then, he slowly opened the lid. Blue mist was flowing out of the chest.

And then, the lid opened wide and a bright, blue flash surrounded the three men...

When the blue light was gone, three figures where still standing before the chest. But they had changed...

In Konatsu's place, a kunoichi still stood. But... this person was truly female, as one could see by the massive breasts pushing against the skin-tight suit. She was wearing several arm, shoulder, and knee guards resembling the bones of various beasts. In fact, they were made from the remains of demons. Her black hair was in a ponytail, and half of her face was covered by a mask. On her back, two Japanese short swords were resting in their sheaths. They, as well as her eyes, were gleaming with an evil energy.

In the place of Mousse, a pale-skinned man was standing, wearing green clothes. He had wild, unruly hair that was a flaming red. From his ears, golden earrings were dangling, and to his hands, two scary-looking claw weapons were attached.

And in the place of Kuno, a big samurai could be seen, donned in armor and helmet. But, it was a demonic armor, looking exactly like the frightening face of a devil. His ghostly face was pitch black, and ghostly wisps were spinning around his katana.

The strange voice laughed. "Very good! Welcome back, my warriors! You have waited for this day, to return to a human body to once again wreak havoc in my name! It will be your task to eliminate the group that is rallying to oppose my servants."

The three figures turned around and knelt down on one of their knees. A black flame began burning in front of their bodies.

"Taki, possessed kunoichi and servant of Soul Edge..."

The female ninja looked up with gleaming eyes.

"If you fulfil your liabilities in my service, I'll finally hand over to you what you seek: The evil sword of souls: Soul Edge itself!"

Taki's hand's were trembling in anticipation.

"Amarant, outsider, bounty hunter and master of the mist..."

The red-haired man gave his master a grin.

"You, who was betrayed by his friends, will finally be granted revenge against them... especially against that monkey-boy and the bandana-clad warrior!"

Amarant chuckled as he imagined ripping his claws through the flesh of Zidane and Ryoga.

"And Bishamon, corporeal form of the demon armor, Hannya, evil samurai of the Makai... You will finally be granted this body as your new form, as well as revenge against those who once had sealed you away."

The evil samurai groaned as he felt the spiritual energy of his previous victims flow through the cursed blade, Kien.

"And now go... go and destroy everyone that dares to oppose my might!"

And they all rose to their feet and saluted their invisible master.

"Hail to you, evil phantom of the Abyss... Hail, Thanatos!"

And in the middle of the black flame, a grinning skull with burning eyes appeared.

* * *

"Finally," Taki sighed as the three warriors strode through the gloomy cavern. "After hundreds of years, to have a body again…"

"You wuss!" Amarant grumbled. "Spending some time in that chest is not as terrible as you make it sound."

The evil ninja glared at him. "You have just died several weeks ago! You don't know what it is like to wait for an eternity..."

"BOTH of you don't know what an eternity is," hissed Bishamon. "I have spent aeons after aeons without a suitable host... and waiting can be much more painful than you think, kunoichi!"

"Whatever," Taki shrugged. She drew her evil blade, Mekki-Maru, and stroked its blade lovingly. "I'm just glad to being once again able to wield my precious... If it wasn't for Mekki-Maru, I would still try to destroy Soul Edge, instead of serving it. What a fool I was..."

"What surprises me most are the powers our master seems to have," Amarant pointed out. "Being able to send us back in time and through space... That's not an easy feat."

"I would do ANYTHING for my revenge," Bishamon growled. "Kien is thirsting for the blood of those who sealed me away... especially for that of that cursed werewolf, and his cat-girl hussy..."

Suddenly, her master's voice echoed through Taki's mind. "Taki," he hissed. "Your first mission is taking you to another planet. You are an assassin, are you not? Well then, your job will be to kill a certain woman..."

Taki smirked. Just as she liked it. "Understood, master!"

* * *

Pluto was just providing her locker with a special padlock, and Ranma was nibbling on some Tofu he brought back from the kitchen.

The door opened. A young, thin boy with black hair was standing in the hall. He was wearing a white jumpsuit and carried a modern-looking backpack.

"Um, are those the quarters for the 'Hero Squad'? I'm its new member..."

Ranma stood up. "It sure is! Come on in, we were already told a new one would come. Although, both of us have also just arrived today. The name's Ranma Saotome!"

Pluto smiled. "I am Pluto... Pluto the Hedgehog!"

Shinji chuckled. "A hedgehog, huh? Well, not the weirdest thing I've seen... I'm Shinji! Shinji Ikari! I'm a space pilot... and bounty hunter!"

Pluto raised an eyebrow. "A bounty hunter? Wouldn't have guessed by your looks. But, appearances can be deceiving, can they?"

Shinji sighed. "True, true... Well, where can I put my stuff?"

Ranma pointed to the bed and wardrobe next to the window. "Over there, buddy! And hey: Welcome to the troop!"

Shinji smiled as he put his backpack down on the bed. "Thanks!"

* * *

In the evening, Shinji was lying on his new bed and stared at the ceiling. It was no use. He just couldn't stop thinking of her...

Pluto was lying in her bed, right across the room. She could feel something was bothering Shinji, but she didn't want to intrude.

The door opened and Ranma looked into the room. "Hey, you guys! Sakura and her pals are watching original records of old Street Fighter tournaments! You wanna come and watch too?"

Shinji sighed. "I don't feel like watching TV..."

Pluto smirked. "I'll pass, Ranma. Perhaps some other time."

"Um, sure, okay! I'll tell the others! And... I'll bring you some popcorn when it's over, okay? Later!" And he closed the door.

The two roommates stayed quiet for a while.

Finally, Pluto couldn't stand it anymore. "Shinji..." she carefully said. "Something seems to be on your mind, right?"

After a while, Shinji nodded. "Uh-huh..."

Pluto sat up. "Want to talk about it?"

He sighed deeply. "Yeah, I guess that would be the best." He stood up, and the two of them sat down on the table.

Pluto took two Chaos Sodas out of her locker and gave one to Shinji.

"Thanks." He took a sip.

"It's about my girlfriend... her name's Asuka..."

"Did you have to leave her behind?" Pluto asked. She thought about Ranma.

Shinji shook his head. "No... she's dead."

Pluto gasped. "I didn't know! I'm sorry, Shinji..."

"It's okay... Tomorrow, it will be a month since her death. You know... she didn't die in an accident or because of a disease... she was being killed."

Pluto leaned back in her chair and drank some soda. "Tell me!" she finally said.

Shinji nodded. Perhaps he would feel better if someone else would hear the story. "It all started when we were on a patrol flight with our ship, the 'Yui'." He smiled. "You know, originally, I was a space ranger under a government contract, and Asuka... she was my copilot. At that time, we didn't have any romantic interests in each other. I remember how we always used to bicker with each other..."

He had to laugh at the memory. Then he continued: "We were working on order of my father, who was a high-ranking officer..."

* * *

Author's Note:

Next, the story will continue with 'Intergalactic Bounty Hunter Shinji'. A few of the events in that story will be easier to understand if you have read this chapter.


	3. Cold Shoulder?

Author's Note:

This chapter follows after Chapter 10 of 'Intergalactic Bounty Hunter Shinji'. Please read up to that point first.

* * *

"And that's pretty much all there is to it," Shinji ended his tale.

Pluto looked at him with wide eyes. "That's all? You just beat that thing and... flew off?"

Shinji shrugged. "Why not? It's not as if anyone of us had still business to do on that planet. It's true that many things happened once we arrived at the nearest federal outpost, but that doesn't really belong in this story..."

"But how could Misato and the others use Samus' spaceship?" the black hedgehog asked after taking another sip of Chaos Cola.

Shinji smirked. "You're forgetting that Rei as a nearly perfect clone of Samus, so when the ship analyzed her voice and facial features, it recognized her as Samus."

"But what about the others? What about Rei? She had really no past outside of the Space Pirate base... she even was 'born' on Tallon. And could Misato's corruption ever be cured? And did you ever find out where Konatsu came from?"

Shinji smirked. "Well, just as I said: This doesn't really belong in this story. But no, we didn't know how to take Konatsu back to her own time. But... you know, after the Esper contacted me and asked if I was interested to become a member of our group... they also asked Konatsu if she wanted to come along."

"And... what did she say?"

* * *

"Guys, we're out of soda, let me go down to the vending machine in the hall and get some stuff."

"All right, Ranma, but you better hurry, now comes the good stuff! You don't want to miss Ryu beating up Zangief, do you?"

"I'll be right back, Sakura!"

Ranma closed the door behind him and walked along the hallway, until he was standing in front of the vending machine. When he reached into his pocket, he remembered that he had no money.

"Damn... out of coins..." he muttered.

"Here, take this one," a female voice next to him spoke up as a slender hand handed him a coin.

Ranma smiled. "Hey, thanks..."

The girl with the long, black ponytail gasped. "R-ranma?"

Ranma frowned. "Do we know each other?" True, her face looked somewhat similar, and those ninja clothes…

Then he gasped as well. "K-konatsu? H-how did you get here?"

* * *

Later, Konatsu was sitting with Ranma and his two new team mates in their new quarters.

"So that means... you're stuck as a girl?" Ranma asked after Shinji gave him the short version of his story.

"Yes, but I don't mind that so much anymore," Konatsu replied. "I'd rather go and see Ukyo again, but..." She sighed. "Goku-sama already told me that she has... she has a..."

"A boyfriend?" Pluto asked.

Konatsu nodded. "Yeah... And when he asked me if I wanted to go back home, I couldn't quite answer that question... With Ukyo gone, I really had no reason to go back to Nerima. So he was nice enough to offer me a place to stay at the Esper HQ... to train my abilities as a ninja and to be of service when I'm needed."

"I'm glad to hear you found a place to stay," Ranma said. "Do you like it here so far?"

"I think it's an interesting place, and several people I met were very nice to me. I think I'm going to pay Ukyo a visit some time, but for now, I've come to terms with my situation."

* * *

The following day, the four of them were strolling around the amusement area of the HQ, and Ranma and Pluto showed Shinji and Konatsu the places they hadn't seen yet.

When they came past several stores, Konatsu stopped as an elderly merchant offered him a few ninja weapons.

"That ninjato..." she muttered.

"Do you like it, sir?" the merchant asked with a grin. "Not too expensive, and it has magical powers residing within."

"What is it, Konatsu?" Pluto asked when she and the others noticed how Konatsu had stopped.

Konatsu shook his head. "N-never mind... for a while, I believed that blade over there was the Mekki-Maru..."

Ranma scratched his head. "Mekki-Maru?"

Konatsu sighed. "The cursed blade Taki had used to gather souls. She always has used it when she had possessed me, along with the tainted Rekki-Maru. For a second I was afraid that this cursed weapon has found its way back to her... her former body..."

"Your body..." Shinji murmured.

Pluto took a closer look at the blade that was lying in front of the merchant, then she huffed. "This is just a fake!"

"I assure you, this is not a fake!" the merchant said. "See its magical aura? This is certainly proof that it is..."

"A simple illusion spell, that's all!" Pluto said, glaring at the elderly man. "You should be ashamed to sell your customers such rubbish!"

While they kept on walking, Pluto shook her head. "I honestly wonder how such scum could be allowed to enter HQ. Goku must know about this."

'Well, Goku has always been a bit... lax in regards to security,' a familiar, telepathic voice called out for them.

Ranma smiled when he saw his main Esper floating towards them. "Hi there, Carbuncle!"

'Hello Ranma! You are showing your new friends the HQ?'

"He does, and I must say, I am impressed," Shinji smiled as he looked around. "Never before when I was in the service of the Galactic Federation would I have guessed that such a place exists... Several of the federal leaders really ought to take a look at this."

'I'm glad you like it. We are rather proud of it.' As one of the descendants of the original Espers, Carbuncle had every right to be proud. 'By the way, did you already meet my wife, Siren? She is over there with a close acquaintance of ours...'

They looked over to a small shop that offered pottery wares, where Siren was standing next to a female Esper with blue skin. She waved when she saw her husband and his friends looking over.

Pluto suddenly gasped when she saw the Esper standing next to Siren. She shuddered. 'Can it... can it really be...?'

"What's wrong, Pluto?" Ranma asked as he looked down at her in worry. "You look as if you had seen a ghost."

"That... that woman..." the black hedgehog muttered and raised her index finger.

Ranma followed the gesture and raised an eyebrow. "You mean Shiva? What's wrong with her?"

"Shiva?" Pluto asked in surprise. "You mean she's not...?"

She took a closer look at the blue-skinned woman who was chatting with Siren, and when she laughed, she got a closer look at her face.

Pluto sighed in relief. "Never mind... it's not who I feared it was."

"You thought she was someone else?" Konatsu asked.

Pluto nodded. "Yes, for a while I thought... I was looking at an old nemesis of mine... but that would have been impossible!" She chuckle bashfully. "After all, she and her comet have already been destroyed some time ago..."

"Comet?" Ranma wondered. "Just like the Black Comet?"

Pluto sighed. "No, but that's another long story... but wait..." She thought about it. "Actually, I could tell you the story. After all, it begins not too shortly after my first story has ended... and it closely ties with my search for my brother."

"You have a brother?" Shinji asked curiously.

'Say, why don't we go over to that nice cafe, I'll order some drinks, and you can take your time and tell us everything you like,' Carbuncle suggested.

Pluto nodded. "Yes, that's a good idea."

Shortly afterwards, they were all sitting in front of Kupo's Coffee Bar, and several cups of iced coffee were standing in front of them.

Pluto took a sip, then she began with the second part of her tale:

"Well, as I said, it all began shortly after the disaster with Perfect Chaos and the Death-Busters... At first, I didn't notice anything of the approaching danger... After having accepted as my role as Sailor Pluto, I decided to make closer contact with society, and I even made a few human friends..."

* * *

Author's Note:

Next, please continue with Chapter 15 of 'Chaos Scream'.


End file.
